Vitor Belfort out of UFC 147 with a broken hand

The Brazilian fans just can’t catch a break. First they lost the ability to break records with a soccer stadium fight due to a conflicting UN meeting . Then they lose the rematch of the century as their hometown hero, Anderson Silva vs. the villain-is Chael Sonnen is moved to Las Vegas, NV. Now headliners Wanderlei Silva and Vitor Belfort has been scratched due to an injury… It seems the injury bug has bitten Vitor yet again as he reports breaking his hand in training for the fight. UFC 147 takes place on June 23rd, giving the organization less than a month to patch the problem. White, understandably stressed by the news.

“I wake up this morning, and Vitor Belfort breaks his hand, and he’s in [expletive] surgery,” White said. “It never ends for me. Every day we get up, and bad [expletive] happens. And guess what? I can guarantee you that when I wake up tomorrow, something else is going to happen.”

With the event so close, and tickets already sold – White says that we will in fact see Wanderlei perform at the June event in home country.

“I’m working on it,” White said. “Wanderlei will fight.”

The search is on to locate a replacement for Belfort. It’s hard to say who they choose to replace Vitor against Wanderlei. Do they go with a big name, or do they go with a fighter on a hot streak, who could skyrocket their career with a win over the Pride legend?

The likely biggest name that would be a viable option is a rematch with Michael Bisping. Though currently scheduled to fight on July 7th against Tim Boetsh, but could easily transition to repair the card. Another option is against the very dangerous, Alan Belcher who is coming off a big TKO win over Rousimar Palhares. Win over a legend like Wanderlei could put him in line for a title shot. Lastly, they could take former welterweight title contender, Jake Shields who would not pose a huge threat to Wanderlei, and is someone who could potentially give him a big win in his home country. As it stands now, match-maker Joe Silva will have his hands full for the next few days.